By Bruno Waterfield - 30th November 2006
EU “job mobility portals” in Africa will match European employment needs to the availability of migrants, under new Brussels proposals unveiled on Thursday.
The idea is a central plank of European commission efforts to offer African countries legal migration possibilities in return for taking back deported illegal immigrants.
“The commission proposes the establishment of European job mobility portals that will provide African countries with information about the job opportunities in Europe,” said the commission.
“Initiatives will also be taken on labour matching with the aim of facilitating the link between labour demand and supply.”
But the proposal will face opposition from key EU member states, such as Germany, concerned at giving Brussels any say over immigration quotas.
The EU job centres will form part of new “mobility packages” binding African countries to deals forcing them to accept back illegal migrants stopped at Europe’s borders.
“Once certain conditions have been met - such as cooperation on illegal migration and effective mechanisms for the readmission of illegal migrants - these packages could be agreed between the EU and interested African countries, which would make for easier movement of people and give them better access to the labour market of EU member states,” said a document.
European justice commissioner Franco Frattini played down divisions migration quotas and claimed that a new consensus was emerging.
“It might be possible to give the commission the wherewithal to negotiate,” he told journalists.
“We have a consensus. A number of member states are reluctant. But I think they understand that if the EU negotiates then it will improve the position of all member states.”
“These are packages we want to negotiate country by country [with Africa].”
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